Panelization/Board routing
The shape of PCB’s impacts handling and assembly time. Small PCB’s,
<10mm length and <10mm width, present difficulties during assembly. Placement
of parts on such PCB’s becomes more difficult when automated. For
this reason, it
is recommended that such PCB’s be panelized. (See Fig. 1)
However, the grouping should also consider the structural integrity
of the panel as a whole as the robots will treat each panel as an individual board.
The grouping should not be such that the entire panel becomes flimsy. This situation
creates another placement problem. (See Fig. 2)
For boards designed
to have parts protrude from the edge, grouping is also possible. In most situations,
it is advised that clients consult Logas before routing the boards. However, figure
3 can serve a guide.
Fig 1:Board Panelization
Fig 2. Structural integrity of
panelized PCB's
Fig 3: Panelization for boards with protruding parts.
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